A Male And Female Doing Some Remodeling Work For Weatherford In Vernal Steal Personnel Files

Posted by Travis Uresk | Nov. 24th, 2022 | Theft |

By Travis Uresk

11/24/22

Vernal, Ut.- On 11/16/22, Agent Simper was working with the Uintah Basin Narcotic Strike Force along with multiple other Agents and the AP&P with home visits for probationers. If drug activity was noticed, Agents are called into the residence to assist with searching, interviewing, and constructing a case.

Two probationers, Eric Gerald Osborn and Amanda Aaron, were listed as living at 1015 East US 40 at the Split Mountain Motel, room 103, in Vernal, Utah.

Agent Conley and Agent Ercanbrack made contact with the individuals and later requested that the Strike Force Agents assist them.

Agent Simper spoke with Amanda, and she stated there would be no illegal narcotics or drug paraphernalia in the room. Amanda stated the last time she used meth was approximately two weeks ago.

Agent Gledhill interviewed Eric Osborn, who admitted to using meth recently, and advised him there would be used syringes in the bedroom. The Agents searched the Motel room and found multiple drug items, paraphernalia, and meth was found.

While searching the bedroom, Agent Simper lifted the bed skirt and found multiple files. A closer look at the files was personnel files from Weatherford, a company in Naples, Ut. There were 15 files in total, with names containing identifying documents of individuals.

In this stack of folders were receipts from Basin Recycling to Eric Osborn dated 11/14/22. Next to this stack of files was an unopened box with a pallet shipping label. Agent Simper opened the box and saw an Omnitracs camera system used in fleet vehicles that Weatherford uses in their vehicles.

Agent Simper called an employee at Weatherford and asked about the personnel files and the names on the files. He confirmed those were Weatherford's files and should not be in possession of any other person than the business.

Agent Simper asked the Weatherford employee if he knew Eric Osborn or Amanda Aaron; he said Eric had been a third-party contractor for the company. The Weatherford employee stated Eric did not have permission from the company to access these files, let alone take them from the property. Agent Simper told the employee he also found an Omni Tracs camera System in Eric's possession. He advised Agent Simper Weatherford had ordered a pallet of those camera systems to place in their fleet vehicles 4-5 months ago. The shipping label said the delivery date was May 2022.

An email was sent with the 15 individuals' names on the personnel files to the Weatherford employee. A follow-up meeting was set up for the next day to gather more information at Weatherford in Naples.

Agent Simper completed an inventory of the personnel files and the camera system from the Split Mountain Motel room 103, and both Amanda and Eric were arrested on drug charges. These items were scanned, inventoried, and placed into evidence.

On 11/17/22, Agent Simper met with the Weatherford employee, who confirmed the files had been taken from the filing cabinets. Agent Simper was taken to the room where the filing cabinets are and saw another box containing the same boxes of Omnitracs camera systems. These camera systems are valued at $5,000 to $7,000.

Omnitracs camera systems

Omnitracs camera systems

These items were released back to Weatherford. The employee told Agent Simper both Eric and Amanda had been at Weatherford over the weekend working on a remolding project of the building.

On 11/18/22, Agent Simper went to the Uintah County Jail, where he interviewed both Eric and Amanda. Amanda stated they had both been hired to help remodel the grey building at Weatherford, and they had moved multiple filing cabinets. She denied entering them and did not see Eric enter them either.

She was asked how the items ended up in her room. Amanda stated Eric brings all sorts of things back from jobsites but has always told her they were given to him.

Amanda stated her side of the bedroom was the closest to the door where she stored her items. Eric’s side of the bedroom was the far side where the stolen items were found.

Eric was booked into the Uintah County Jail and declined to answer any questions from Agent Simper.